


If You're Not Smiling, You're Falling Apart

by canufeelthemagictonight



Category: Escape the Night (Web Series), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst and Feels, Escape the Night Spoilers, Foreshadowing, Friendship, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Guilt, Hero Worship, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Male Friendship, One Shot, Past Character Death, Prequel, Promises, Sort Of, Wakes & Funerals, Youtube comments, for s2 mainly but also a s3 death is kinda spoiled, someone hug the cinnamon roll
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-09
Updated: 2018-09-09
Packaged: 2019-07-08 19:22:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15936698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canufeelthemagictonight/pseuds/canufeelthemagictonight
Summary: All he can do is stare at Alex's coffin and wonder:What if I'd been there? Could I have saved him? Could things have been different?Roi Fabito, between seasons.An Escape the Night one-shot.





	If You're Not Smiling, You're Falling Apart

**Author's Note:**

> So I've reached Venomous Affections in my novel, and (SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER) I'm delaying Roi's inevitable demise by writing this instead. Yeah, it's still very angsty, but hope you like it anyway.

Roi remembers the last conversation he ever had with Alex. It was brief, and it was over the phone instead of in person, but Alex's words are burned into his memory like a permanent scar. "It's been a while," he said. "Maybe we should start planning a collab. Just because we don't run a channel together anymore doesn't mean we can't still work together."

Of course, Roi agreed. They decided to spend the weekend figuring out a date and a theme, and then, Roi recalls signing off with a simple "Gotta go. Talk later. Bye!"

"Bye!" was Alex's cheery farewell.

He went missing the next day.

The world spent three months looking for the nine lost YouTubers (ten, for those who thought that the previous disappearance of Joey Graceffa was related to the rest of the case). Roi helped, of course. He spent all of autumn joining various search parties, screaming his friends' names into the night until his voice gave out, helping Alex's family with anything they needed, using his growing social media platform to beg the public for information. He hoped against hope that this wasn't like what happened last year.

But then, one chilly morning, Roi absent-mindedly turned on the TV, and he saw the faces of Tyler Oakley and Andrea Russett underneath the blurb KIDNAPPED YOUTUBERS FOUND. "There were two survivors, shown here," said the newscaster in a pained voice. "Unfortunately, seven bodies have been recovered, and all seven have been confirmed to belong to the missing web stars. Only Joey Graceffa remains unaccounted for."

_Two survivors...Tyler and Andrea...and only Joey hasn't been found...that means...that means Alex didn't make it..._

He cried.

He's still crying.

He sits in the second row of Alex and Lauren's double funeral, watching the officiant eulogize his friends, but he _still_ can't believe it. Alex has been in his life for years, like a permanent fixture in his heart. They were best friends. They ran Wassabi Productions together. Even when Roi stopped being Roi Wassabi and moved on to his own channel, he still cared for Alex, and he knew that Alex cared as well. _We were planning a collab and everything. He's not supposed to be dead!_ None _of these people are supposed to be dead!_

His hands shake. The officiant's voice washes over him, but he can't bring himself to listen to his words. All he can do is stare at Alex's coffin and wonder: _What if I'd been there? Could I have saved him? Could things have been different?_

After the funeral, he corners Tyler Oakley. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," says Tyler. There's a haunted look in his blue eyes. Of course. According to what Roi heard, the nine YouTubers were held captive by an _actual serial killer_ for three months. That must've _sucked_ to go through. No _wonder_ Tyler seems so traumatized.

"I know you've been through a lot," stammers Roi, "and I know you probably don't wanna talk about it, but...I gotta know one thing. If that's okay with you."

Tyler nods.

"What happened to Alex? I know he was stabbed, but..."

The blonde flinches at the memory, but he answers Roi's question in a calm voice. "He went out protecting everyone, Roi. He died a hero. That's all you need to know."

He gives Roi a quick hug, then leaves.

Roi slumps against somebody's blue convertible, his brown eyes swimming with tears. _Alex was a hero._ He imagines Alex as a caped crusader, fire in his eyes, holding off hordes of monsters while the others look for a way out. The thought comforts him, but only slightly.

 _Heroes shouldn't die at the end,_ he decides. If this was a movie, _maybe_ Alex would fake-die for a few minutes, but then he'd come back, kick butt, save the world, and make out with Lauren (who _also_ wouldn't be dead) as the closing credits started to roll. If _anyone_ died, it would be a second-string character who Alex would feel sad about for a few minutes before using the death as motivation to bring down the bad guy once and for all. But not Alex. Not the hero. Heroes shouldn't die.

Roi finds his car, drives home, and begins to prepare a tribute video for his old friend. _I'll be a hero, too, someday,_ he tells himself as he readies his camera. _I might not have been able to save Alex, but I can still protect the rest of the community. Nothing's gonna hurt us ever again._

Realistically, there's not much he can do, but he doesn't want to think realistically.

 

Time passes. Roi keeps making his usual videos, and he winces every time he sees a comment reminding him that he's all that's left of Wassabi Productions. _What if they come back and get you too?_ asks one commenter in particular, who goes by the screen name of WassabianForever. Roi shivers at the thought. He wants to assure his fans that he'll be okay, but he knows that he probably shouldn't discuss the possibility of serial killers on a family-friendly channel. Maybe he'll save that for a Q and A video or something.

Besides, he promised himself that he wouldn't think about Alex (or the two YouTuber massacres) anymore.

Well, except for when what would've been Alex's twenty-eighth birthday rolls around, and then, he _has_ to think about it. He tweets, of course. A throwback picture. _Happy birthday, @AlexWassabi. Miss you._

Once the tweet has been posted, he collapses onto his couch. Oogi seems to notice that he's upset and rushes over to comfort him. "Thanks, boy," Roi murmurs, petting his dog, trying not to look at Alex's smiling face on his screen.

 

 _He's back in 2014, and they've kidnapped Alex, but this time, it_ isn't _a stupid prank that they'll laugh about together later. This time, it's_ real, _and he's running after the van as fast as he can, but he isn't fast enough, and they're getting away, and they're going to kill Alex, but Roi_ can't _let that happen, he_ has _to save him, he_ has _to—_

The sound of the doorbell ringing awakens Roi from his nightmarish nap. He bolts to his feet, straightens himself up so that he looks _slightly_ presentable, and runs for the door.

When he opens it, there's a delivery man waiting for him. "Are you Roi Fabito?" he asks.

Roi smiles politely. "Yeah. That's me." He knows for a _fact_ that he didn't order anything.

"I have a letter for you." The man hands Roi a cream-colored envelope, then walks away before Roi can thank him.

 _Oooh! A letter!_ It's then that Roi remembers that he has to brush his teeth. Oh, well! He's a good multitasker! He can do two things at once! He heads for the bathroom, puts toothpaste on his toothbrush, opens the envelope, brushes, and reads.

_My friends,_

_I'm going on an extraordinary adventure, and I'm in need of your help...and so are hundreds of others._

**Author's Note:**

> Whoopsie daisy, this whole thing became a prequel to Roi's _Escape the Night: A Continuation_ character arc. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a novel to write...


End file.
